Difference Between Color and Dye

Color and dye are two very commonplace words in the world of hair coloring today. Though there are many other types of dyes that are used in fabrics and food items to give coloration to them, color in general today means hair color that is being used more and more by men and women in all parts of the world. There are many who use the words interchangeably as if dye is a synonym of color. However, this is not correct as despite their similarities there are many differences between color and dye, which will be clear after reading this article.

Don’t know why, but only two generations ago, the word dye was more common for the practice of changing the color of one’s hair. It is a fact though that people resorted to dying their hair only when it turned grey because of age, quite unlike today when one can see teenage boys and girls making use of hair color to catch attention of opposite sex and to look and feel confident. This has got to do with celebrities using wigs with different hair colors and also coloring their hair in shades that look very alluring though these are the colors that are not found naturally on the heads of the people. It is only natural for teens to follow the footsteps of their idols and try to color their hair using products available in the market.

Only a century earlier, dyes were used to color fabrics only. They were substances that changed the color of a fabric when the piece of fabric was dipped for sometime in an aqueous solution of this dye. Many substances found naturally are examples of dyes such as plant sources (roots and leaves of plants). However, in modern times, synthetic dyes are preferred as they provide more vibrant and long lasting colors to fabrics. There are even food dyes that are used to change the color of the food. These are additives that are produced to a higher standard than dyes used for fabrics as they affect human health. Similarly, there are hair dyes that are also produced keeping in mind safety of human beings and their sensitivities of human skin to various chemicals.

Women have been coloring their hair with natural dyes long before modern synthetic hair colors and hair dyes arrived on the scene. Women see a strong connection between their femininity and the color of their hair. They also try to enhance their beauty through coloration of their hair. One of the attractions of hair coloring lies in the fact that one can change his or her appearance through non invasive means. Also hair dyes and colors allow one to look more youthful; when hair turns grey.

Most of the hair colors and hair dyes available in the market owe their existence to the discovery made by French chemist Eugene Schueller working on the compound called p-phenylenediamine that had the ability to stick to hair shaft and color it. This compound is invariably present in all coloring products along with ammonia and peroxide in varying proportions.

What is the difference between Color and Dye?

· Dyes are almost as old as human civilization, and naturally found dyeing substances like plant leaves, roots, and woods have been used to color fabrics since time immemorial.

· Colors are for food as well as human hair, though dye was the term used to refer to hair coloring only a few decades ago.

· Dyes has a connotation of being harder than a hair color today and rarely used, whereas all companies prefer to use the word hair color for their products.